Houston-area minister shot and killed

By Craig Hlavaty :
July 4, 2014
: Updated: July 4, 2014 2:46pm

A Houston-area minister and musician was killed overnight by a burglar who had broken into his home in west Harris County, according to law enforcement officials.

Donald Frazier, 69, was shot and killed in his garage after his own weapon was taken by the suspect during a struggle and used to kill him, according to Harris County deputies.

The incident occurred just after 1 a.m. at Frazier's home in the 4200 block of Amber Lake in the Deerfield Village subdivision.

Harris County Sheriff's Office deputies say that Frazier and his wife Susan Frazier had heard noise in their garage and Frazier armed himself and went to investigate when he encountered the intruder on a backyard patio. The suspect shot Frazier with his own gun, killing him, after a brief struggle.

A suspect, Daniel Durham, age 31, was taken later into custody after deputies located him walking in the subdivision just blocks from the murder scene. Durham had blood on his t-shirt, shorts and legs when he was discovered and matched the description that Frazier's wife had given first responders, according to HCSO.

"Durham was transported to the Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit, where he provided investigators with a statement admitting to the shooting," deputies said in a release on Friday.

According to deputies the murder weapon was placed in a trash can, where it was later recovered.

News 92 FM reported that the suspect had been stopped by a neighborhood patrol earlier on Thursday evening but when questioned he had said that his mother lived nearby and that he was just going for a walk.

A dispatcher with S.E.A.L. Security Services, which is contracted to patrol the neighborhood, deferred all inquiries into the matter to their public relations manager, who could not be reached. They would not confirm if it was one of their guards that encountered Durham on Thursday evening before the shooting.

According to his website, Frazier had been an ordained minister since 1974 and had a long and eventful ministry that was marked by his piano-playing, counseling and writing.

Frazier began his gospel music career in 1967 with Trav’Lers Quartet, according to his biography on the Chariot Records website. He earned a Ph.D. in 1980 and began a new career as a professional counselor while continuing to play music. According to Chariot, he only had taken one piano lesson his entire life, but he would go on to have a fruitful musical career as a part of church bands and as a solo artist.

He devoted his life to Christ after answering an altar call at the age of 18, according to Chariot.

Listed among the accolades on his website it appears that Frazier was also an honorary member of the Katy Police Officer’s Association.

Deputies say that murder charges are pending against Durham.

On Friday morning Frazier's family informed his Facebook followers of the fatal events that occurred overnight and thanked them for their support and prayers. Friends of Frazier from as far back as high school were sending condolences to the Frazier family.

Frazier's last blog post for Absolutely Gospel Music was dated July 1. He was a regular contributor to the site, writing on scholarly biblical interpretations and translations.